In recent years, product delivery systems have been employed in agricultural implements to deliver seed, fertilizer and herbicides to planting units. As the size of agricultural implements continues to grow, the versatility of such implements becomes more significant.
Planting implements are of various designs to dispense seeds, fertilizer, and herbicides at a controlled rate to an agricultural field. In a conventional arrangement, a tractor is coupled to tow the planting implement across the agricultural field. The planting implement generally includes a tool bar to which are attached a plurality of planting units in a generally parallel, spaced relation apart. Each planting unit typically includes a seed hopper for containing and carrying a large quantity of seeds to be planted or a smaller container fed from a centralized in or large hopper, a device for opening a furrow in the ground as the tractor drawn tool bar is advanced across the field over the ground, a metering mechanism coupled to the seed hopper for dispensing individual seeds into the furrow at a controlled rate, and a further device for moving soil at the sides of the furrow to close the furrow over the seeds.
The many different types of seeds to be planted using a planting unit can include corn, cotton, sorghum, sugar beets, soybeans and sunflowers to name a few. As will be appreciated, such seeds vary considerably in size, weight and shape. For example, peanut and edible bean seeds are among the largest seeds for planting and have elongated irregular shapes and outer surfaces. Soybean, and palletized seeds are smaller and tend to be rounder and vary in shape and size. Sorghum and raw sugar beet seeds have a rounder almost spherical appearance. Sorghum seeds have a relatively smooth outer surface. On the other hand, raw sugar beet seeds have a very rough and irregular outer surface configuration. Cotton seed is small and shaped like some corn seed. In contrast, corn seeds have a somewhat triangular shape with generally flat sides. Despite these numerous differences in the size, shape and surfaces of such seeds, the planting unit is required to handle all the different types of seeds described above plus many more while requiring minimum effort regarding part changes and adjustments.
A wide variety of agricultural planting units are generally available, depending on the type and the form of the product being metered and the desired accuracy and consistency of metering. In general, conventional planting units can be of the mechanical type or the air pressure differential type.
The mechanical type of planting unit generally includes a vertical or horizontal seed plate or disc with mechanically actuated fingers of similarly operated mechanical devices for separating individual seeds from the seed disc and then dispensing them into the furrow. The air pressure differential type planting unit, which are commonly known as air seeders, are generally of two types: a negative pressure type and a positive-pressure type.
The vacuum-type air seeder generally includes a pressure source coupled to a chamber opposite a seed mass or supply, with a metering mechanism therebetween. The pressure source communicates a vacuum through openings in the metering mechanism to the seed mass. The vacuum is of sufficient magnitude such that it tends to draw seeds into the openings defined by the metering mechanism and hold the seeds thereto as the seeds are moved through the chamber under the influence of the moving metering mechanism toward a seed discharge area for application in an agricultural field.
An example of a vacuum-type of air seeder is a plate seeder. A conventional plate seeder generally includes a rotatable plate having a plurality of openings therethrough about its outer perimeter. With such plate systems, product is delivered to a first side of the rotatable plate while a vacuum source (e.g., fan or blower) provides a vacuum on a second opposite side of the rotatable plate. This vacuum draws and retains individual product in the openings against the rotatable plate. During rotation, the rotatable plate carries the product to locations above seed delivery tubes, where the vacuum is broken such that the product falls from the rotatable plate and into a tube for delivery to the agricultural field.
The typical positive-pressure type of air seeder includes a pressure configured to convey a forced air stream into a seed chamber and onto a surface of a rotating or otherwise movable and apertured metering mechanism or disc in order to create a higher than atmospheric pressure (i.e., positive pressure) in the chamber. This positive-pressure air stream forces the seed from a seed mass and onto the metering mechanism, where the seed is retained for later release. The apertures or holes in the rotating metering mechanism open to the atmosphere in a known manner such that the individual seeds are held by the forced air stream. When the forced air stream is interrupted, the seed is dispensed to the agricultural field.
An example of the positive-pressure type of air seeder is a pneumatic seeder. A conventional pneumatic seeder generally includes a meter roller assembly having flutes located at the bottom of a material compartment and fed product by gravity from a bulk fill hopper. The product is metered by the roller assembly of flutes into a pneumatic distribution system. Typically, the pneumatic distribution system includes a force air source or blower operable to provide a forced air stream through distribution lines configured to convey the metered product to a series of secondary distribution manifolds (“headers”), which in turn distribute product to a group of ground openers mounted on the seeding implement operable to place seed in the ground. The ground openers are configured to evenly deliver the product to the span of ground (the “seedbed”) acted upon by the seeding implement.
Another example of a positive-pressure type of planting unit is an air cart combined with an inductor assembly that is adapted to entrain seed or other product from a large bulk fill hopper into a forced air stream for conveyance to relatively smaller seed bins, mini-hoppers, or reservoirs located at receivers remotely located from the hopper. The bulk fill hopper allows a farmer to plant more acreage before having to stop to fill the central storage hopper again, resulting in quicker planting and less labor while maintaining the precision spacing available by on-row singulation. A forced air system or fan provides the stream of forced air through a nurse inductor system along a path to agitate and entrain the seed particulates from the bulk fill hopper. The distribution system generally includes one or more distribution lines operable to route or direct the combined stream of forced air and entrained product from the inductor assembly toward one or more receivers. The receivers are configured to perform on-row planting of the seed product to an agricultural field. Each receiver generally includes one or more seed bins or mini-hoppers located on top of a respective seed metering unit and an injector configured to uniformly apply the seed into a furrow in the ground.
These certain known air seeders and planters as described above have several drawbacks. Typically, farmers require that the implements be cleaned-out after planting or that the seed types be changed from one variety to another. However, known implements do not provide for an efficient method to change-out or clean-out product from the bulk fill hopper, the metering mechanism, and the planting units or receivers. To clean-out or change-out the certain known bulk fill hoppers, metering mechanisms, receivers, etc., the farmer must empty the bulk fill hopper, and then manually remove and disassemble the metering mechanism and/or receiver so as to empty-out the product. Alternatively, farmers use portable shop vacuums to clean-out the implements. This clean-out process of using portable shop vacuums and the like is cumbersome and very time-consuming and requires the use of an external power source apart from the implement or tractor.
There is thus a need for an improved method of cleaning or switching product of an implement. To achieve this end, there is a desire for a cleanup system for removing residual product from the bulk fill hopper, the metering mechanism, the receiver, etc. of the implement. The method for and system of cleanup needs to be simple, reliable, durable, and efficient for ready use on a planting implement in an agricultural setting or environment.